GND-KicaCris: Yo peeps! This is GND-KicaCris back from the shadows! Woohoo! Before you go and read this exciting new chapter of "Sugar Queen", please give a round of applause to our new official co-writer and chief editor: The Phantom Solidier!
*thunderous applause*
The Phantom Soldier: Thank you, thank you. I'm greatly honored to be given the title. But folks, let's turn that applause right back around to the lovely lady who gave us this marvelous story in the first place, Ms. GND-KicaCris!
*even grander applause*
The Phantom Soldier: Ladies and gentlemen, we must apologize profusely for how long this one took us. Believe me, there's A LOT going on here, both in the story and reality. We must also inform you that the M-Rated Chapter 13 is being pushed back to Chapter 14 as we needed to cleave this chapter in half due to its length. On the upside, you should have the next installment of this tale somewhere in the next two weeks. And Chapter 14 and all its steamy goodness not long after. M'lady?
GND-KicaCris: Yes, next half will be uploaded shortly once Phantom is ready with the edition. Hopefully you all will find it worth the wait with this special two part chapter.
GND-KicaCris: There is also a little announcement we would like to add as many of you have been questioning it hope this doesn't discourage you guys from reading us further, but we felt it was a matter that needed to be clarified.
The Phantom Soldier: Shall we m'lady?
GND-KicaCris: Yes
The Phantom Soldier: *both taking a deep breath*
GND-KicaCris: Turbo is dead guys.
The Phantom Soldier: Ding, dong, dead, striped socks and all.
GND-KicaCris: Both in canon and in this story as Mr. Moore has already said many times.
The Phantom Soldier: Beyond being mentioned and referred to, he will not be appearing in this tale.
GND-KicaCris: Yep, sorry to disappoint some of you. Though there IS a villain in the story that you will meet. And that's all the spoilers you'll get from us.
The Phantom Soldier: Indeed it is. So now, without further ado, please enjoy this latest installment of Sugar Queen!
GND-KicaCris: Woohoo!
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Original story by GND-KicaCris
Co-written and edited by The Phantom Soldier
"Wreck it Ralph" © Disney
Chapter 12, Part 1: "Party like a bad guy!"
Ralph helped Chocolette aboard the white and blue bullet train that was supposed to take them out of Game Central Station to NES Central. As the Sour Racers entered and took their seats, more excited than ever, the Queen took in every strange yet simplistic and sharp aspects of the long and spacious vehicle; it was significantly larger in size, even larger than the Hero's Duty monorail, with its walls all white while blue circuit lines pulsed and glowed all over them.
Ralph shook her arm a bit to bring her back to reality with a smoldering smile; she smiled flirtatiously at him and took a seat with him with her arm still tangled to his. Chocolette glanced around and noticed that the wagon was quite empty, with them and the Sour Racers being the only passengers on it.
Warhead peeked out from the front seats with his elbows resting on the top of the two seats that he had taken for himself. "So, Wreck-It! How different is NES Central, bro? From the looks of this train, I say it's gotta be mind blowing!" The evil green Afro racer asked him, curiosity and excitement sparkling in his neon green eyes.
Ralph looked at him. Even seated his head still loomed over the many chairs of the car; the rest of the racers focused their attention on their queen's crush. "Well," he started, looking down at Chocolette who blinked at him with a soft smile, eager to listen to his explanation. "Truth to be told, this is actually my first time going to NES Central." His admission earning surprised looks from all of them.
"Really? How come? I would have bet anything that an old timer like you would have already visited all this Arcade's corners," Razz joked but quickly changed to a worried frown as Chocolette glared daggers at her. "I mean, with all due respect of course."
Ralph smiled in understanding, not minding her correction. "I don't know, it never caught my attention I guess. Not many people go there to be honest; it's a place were only the most popular games which have managed to become home console games live," he explained, scratching the side of his face in thought.
"Felix has gone there though, to visit Mario and Luigi in the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario's Bowser's main good-guy, the oldest and most legendary hero of the Arcade; Felix constantly babbles about how awesome he is," he finished as the train started to speed up smoothly, with the blue circuit lights dimming slowly.
The Twizzler twins looked at him while gripping their seats armrests for support. "So you don't know anything - about that place, huh?" They said, completing each other's sentences.
Ralph glanced at them and noticed in amusement that the six evil henchmen of the queen had come closer to hear him out. He shrugged nonchalantly. "I just know the basics of it I guess," he said with a shrug.
"NES Central is a completely different creature from our home. Instead of being one central that connects many games, it's a whole world connected by numerous train stations. Mostly because of the huge quantity of home console games that Litwak has brought to the arcade over the years. Each game is stored onto an individual memory space of the console, which is enough big for the entire world of the game to exist, and there are lots of games active in there. Even a few games from older home consoles live there, since the main Surge Station is too small to offer a home to every older game that doesn't receive an upgraded version to continue gaming on. Just the real popular games manage to get constant updates and keep living." He explained to them while the train traveled smoothly through the arcade's chord, making a soft humming noise while moving.
Rocko then cocked an eyebrow worryingly. "Wait, what happens when the console gets unplugged? Does everybody go down with the ship?" Ralph half smiled uncertainly.
"Well I'm not sure. Usually the avatars get warned beforehand and take refuge in the nearest Surge port until a new console is installed. After that, they can take a temporary small memory place of the console to live in until they receive an upgraded version of their game. If by any chance, the console's memory gets too full and they haven't received the proper game data to keep living inside the console, they have to leave, other wise the console or the player will erase you to give another game a memory space." Ralph finished his explanation just when the computer voice of the train suddenly announced their first stop loudly.
"Arriving at: Hyrule Kingdom Station. The next stop is: Mushroom Kingdom Station."
Ralph looked down at Chocolette with a cocky smile. "According to Clyde, We have to hop off at the next station and transfer to a connection to Bowser's Castle. You ready? I think we're arriving late."
The queen smirked with sensually narrowed eyes. "A queen never arrives late; everyone else is just too early," she sniggered and her racers laughed in agreement.
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Half an hour later Ralph, Chocolette and the Sour Racers arrived at the Koopa Kingdom through the Mushroom Kingdom connection. When the doors of the white and blue bullet train opened for them, they all gaped in awe as they admired the scene that unfolded in front of them. Hot volcanic rivers of lava poured out of the hot rocky landscape into a large red and golden lake of melted rock, surrounded by active volcanoes that silently grumbled angrily while sprouting thick clouds of ash that darkened and animated the thunderous sky above them. A long black bridge made of black melted rock led to the center of the big sinister area, where Bowser's black castle stood tall and proud, with its tall menacing towers reaching high into the sky, adorned with sculptures of the Koopa King's skull on top of each tall building and menacing black cannons that turned around every minute or so in search for any foolish trespasser.
"What a cozy, homey place, eh?" Warhead joked with a wary smile while the rest of his partners flinched worryingly at each bolt of lightning that illuminated the sinister home of the oldest and perhaps most powerful villain in the entire arcade.
Ralph and Chocolette rolled their eyes in unison. "It's not very different from our home, dearies. Take the lava out, and it would look exactly like Black Cola Castle," the dark queen told them with a wave of her hand as they all walked across the bridge towards the castle's entrance.
They all reached the entrance together, with the evil racers walking closely behind Ralph and Chocolette. The wrecker looked down at the queen and then up to the tall wooden doors. Reaching one colossal hand up, he knocked on the door three times. Soon enough, the tall doors opened with booming electronic music coming from deep within, and a short Goomba appeared in front of them wearing black glasses.
"Goomba!" the short brown mushroom creature babbled in a greeting manner.
Ralph and Chocolette exchanged cocked eyebrows with each other and looked back at the creature in amusement.
"Uhm, I'm Wreck-It Ralph, villain of Fix-It Felix Jr., and this is Dark Queen Chocolette Von Schweetz, villainess of Sugar Rush with her minions," Ralph introduced respectively, with the Sour Racers waving at the Goomba in an excited friendly way. "We're here for the party." He wasn't sure if the creature could understand him at all.
The little creature bowed respectfully. "Goomba!" he exclaimed and with that he pushed the doors open wider and gestured for them to come inside with a slight gracious movement of one of its 'feet'. "Goomba, goomba!" he exclaimed again.
Ralph looked at the Queen and the Sours, with the last ones shrugging at him, and shaking his shoulders he began his slow uncertain march inside the castle, following the sun glass wearing Goomba closely.
The more they walked inside the dark castle, the louder the booming electronic music became. Soon enough they reached two tall golden and red doors, with metallic engravings of Bowser's insignia and when the little Goomba opened the doors for them, the eight villains gasped in complete shock and amazement.
It was a massive throne room, larger than perhaps Sugar Rush and Black Cola Castle's throne rooms combined; the lights were dimmed in a cold palette that constantly changed between blue, purple, and green. Loud electronic music blasted from the farthest corner of the long hall, where they all could see the famous arcade dj, Skrillex, playing in a console with several other dj's from Dance Dance Revolution. Many large circular tables, tall bar stools and puffy chairs were scattered all around the room, while a main bar area with twenty bartenders remained near the already crowded and colorful checkered dance floor, located strategically in front of a big platform, just where the tall golden boned throne of Bowser rose proudly above the whole room.
"Sweet Mother Hubbard…" Ralph gaped incredulously, his expression mirrored in the Queen and her racers' faces.
"THERE YOU ARE! Took you long enough to arrive, eh kiddos?" they all heard the booming voice of Bowser. The crowd in front of them parted and the towering old bad-guy emerged with Sorceress on his arm. The tall turtle-dragon was sporting a fancy royal purple cape over his shoulders and had a big golden collar that flashily read "BIG BAD BOSS" hanging from his neck, while Sorceress was beautifully dressed in a regal royal red and black gown, with a tiny red top hat that delicately adorned her long braided blue hair.
The blue she-elf floated towards them and tackled Chocolette with a big hug, surprising Ralph and the racers. "I'm so glad you two decided to come! We'll have so much fun! I'm Sorceress by the way!" she introduced herself with excitement written all over her beautiful features.
Chocolette nervously half smiled at her. "I-I know, I remember you from my first Bad Anon meeting. You're the only other girl in the group," she greeted her back.
Sorceress furrowed her brow but didn't stop smiling. "Yeah, it's such a shame that there are so few bad-girls in Game Central! It's not fun to be around so many guys for so long. But since you arrived at the arcade, things have gotten more interesting around here, right Ralph?" she winked knowingly at the wrecker, which made him and the queen blush with embarrassment.
Bowser let out a loud guffaw. "You guys are still too sober. We'll see if you will still blush at my lady's innuendo after a few drinks," he then looked at the six unfamiliar figures that were looking at him with uncertain eyes. "And who are these colorful folks?" he asked and Chocolette quickly proceed to introduce her racers.
"These are Razz, Warhead, Rocko, Zoet, Zuur and Franknerd, my Sour Racers, your highness. They're my most loyal subjects and also the six main mini-bosses of Sugar Rush. They're also my personal body guards; I hope you don't mind me bringing them here tonight," she said with a mischievous smirk while the Sour Racers made a respectful military salute to the old bad-guy.
"Of course not," he beamed broadly. "As I said yesterday, all villains and evil minions are welcome in my castle. And there's no reason for them to worry about your security, your grace; there's no safer place in this arcade than my castle for sure. So go lads and lassies, go and have your fun. You all seem to need it." The Sour Racers looked at their queen expectantly.
She smirked at them. "Well you heard the man, scram already!" she ordered, but not before winking at Razz, who bowed knowingly just before they all cheered wildly and headed straight for the bar area.
Ralph shook his head in amusement as Bowser and Sorceress sniggered knowingly. "Come on kids, as my guests of honor you'll sit with us at the head table. Plus, there are a couple of important fellow bad-guys that I would like to introduce you to." Bowser gestured for them to follow him and they all did so.
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Bowser guided them trough the crowed room with Sorceress floating softly at his side. Ralph tightened his grip on Chocolette's arm as the two walked through the crowd, with all evil eyes curiously and eagerly looking at them.
After walking for a while, the four characters stopped in front of one of the many guest tables located near the center of the room. The table was occupied by four unfamiliar characters who were eagerly chatting and drinking some neon colored beverages. Ralph blinked silently as he took in the characters' appearances. The tallest of them all was a penguin approximately eight feet tall, dressed in some sort of fancy old Japanese winter yukata with a red winter hat on his head. At his side was a considerably shorter, round, blue character who wore armor playing on his shoulder and a silver mask that covered most of his face and round body, complete with a purple cap, purple pointy shoes and silver gauntlets. Next to him was a character that Ralph immediately related to the famous red plumber of the arcade, with the difference being that this character was considerably much more rotund and his mustache looked like zigzagging worm. He was dressed like a motorcyclist, with yellow fingerless gloves, a tattered blue jean jacket and ripped red jeans, with a yellow helmet on his head, which sported a bluish "W" on its front. The last of them was a silver humanoid wolf, dressed in some sort of space suit, with black shoulder pads, a dark blue vest, purple belt, black pants and black leather combat boots.
The four unknown characters stopped their chat and looked silently at them with judging frowns; Bowser looked back at Ralph and Chocolette with a friendly smirk. "Let me introduce to you some of my comrades from Super Smash Bros. Brawl, kiddos. These are King Dedede, Meta Knight, Mario's weird cousin Wario and last but not least, Wolf O'Donnell. My friends, these are my guests of honor: Wreck-It Ralph and Dark Queen Chocolette Von Schweetz." The tall turtle dragon presented and they all gave slight bows of their heads as a gesture of greeting.
"The famous Wreck-It Ralph, eh? The one who game jumped and saved the arcade from that wacko Turbo?" King Dedede wondered with a squeaky voice.
"The one who also gave back the entire kingdom to the Sugary Princess of that candy themed go-kart game?" Wolf O'Donnell questioned in amusement with a dark smirk.
Ralph scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Yeah…It's a great honor for me to meet you all," he tried to sound proud but it was hard to play it cool in front of such an important group of villains.
Wario let out a friendly guffaw. "For such a big, intimidating old timer like you, you're quite timid, Wreck-It. We're all friends here. I've heard some amusing things about you from my cousins. How's Fix-It by the way?" he asked while blatantly scratching his rear in front of them.
Chocolette wrinkled her nose a bit in disgust but tried to remain regal and composed, as her royal code demanded her. Ralph just cleared his throat and ignored Wario's antics. "He's fine, happily married and still fixing stuff," he answered him with a shrug.
Wario let out a resigned sigh and forced a half smile. "Good guys always get the pretty girls…even the violent ones," he chuckled and then turned his eyes to the beautiful dark lady that still had her arm latched to the wrecker's strong arm. "Though not all the pretty girls are good girls, right your majesty?" he said, offering her a lecherous stare while checking her up and down with a wild, salivating grin.
Ralph couldn't help himself and became stiff with sudden boiling anger, glaring daggers at Mario's evil cousin, while Chocolette smiled in a way that barely hid her disgust and contempt. "Why thank you for your…compliment, Sir Wario," she said, trying to sound polite.
"Watch your manners in front of the lady, Wario!" Meta Knight's deep but suave scolding voice suddenly cut the tension. "Don't forget she's royalty. I offer my sincere apologies on behalf of my friend, your grace. He was programmed to be disgusting in general." The short round warrior bowed respectfully to her, and Wario scratched his head with a nervous chuckle upon noticing Ralph's menacing eyes.
Sorceress floated higher and came closer to Ralph's ear. "Don't mind him dear, it's his way of flattering the queen," she assured him. "You should mentally prepare yourself, because I don't think this will be the last compliment she'll receive tonight." She winked at him with a mischievous giggle, making the wrecker's face burn a bright red. The queen looked up at Sorceress and Ralph and cocked an eyebrow in oblivious confusion, but said nothing.
Bowser cleared his throat to focus the attention on him again. "Right, well if you excuse us gentlemen, there are still more people I want to introduce my guests of honor to," he bowed and signaled them again to follow him.
"Well of course, enjoy the party," Meta Knight spoke on behalf of his group, raising his drink in a cheering gesture. Dedede, Wolf and Wario imitated him too as they watched Ralph and Chocolette resume their walk with Bowser and Sorceress, disappearing among the crowd again.
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Ralph was amazed at the number of bad-guys present at the party. Main villains were one thing, but minions and background characters were another, and far more numerous. As he followed Bowser with Chocolette on his arm, he was astounded, seeing some characters he'd only ever heard of. Near the bar, he could see the Cyborg Kano from Mortal Combat taking on the behemoth King Hippo from Punch-Out in a shot drinking contest, an even match given both character's physical builds. Zombie and all of his brothers were meandering around the dance floor in what could loosely be called dancing. Ralph even noticed Anna Williams from Tekken flirting with the bounty hunter boss Boba Fett from the Star Wars Trilogy game.
After meeting a few more friends and guests of Bowser, the group finally reached the farthest corner of the great hall, where a regal looking canopy table stood alone and spaced well away from the rest of the guest tables. The large round red and golden table remained hidden under translucent white curtains, and was strongly guarded by two of Bowser's blue winged spiky Koopa troopers, who stood still with their arms crossed over their chests, sporting black sun glasses and headsets on their heads.
Bowser gave the two Koopas a nod, and on cue they both opened the curtains and allowed them to enter. Chocolette and Ralph exchanged amazed glances with each other before following the old bad-guy and Sorceress inside the tent.
Once the curtains closed behind them, the wrecker smiled broadly upon recognizing the figures who were already seated around the large oval table.
"Ralph! Choco! You finally come!" greeted Zangief with a slightly drunken toothy grin as he held some playing cards in his wrestle's hands, just as M. Bison, Satine and Dr. Robotnik were also doing. Clyde was also with them, floating smoothly while drinking from his fluorescent orange drink through a long straw.
"It's good to see you two here. Ralph, your majesty," Clyde bowed politely, his cheeks glowing pink in subtle drunkenness.
"We're sorry but we had to start the first round of poker round without you," Satine spoke softly while confidentially throwing a couple more chips into the big colorful pile at the center of the table.
The four villains lowered their poker cards in unison, and Zangief cheered victoriously while the other three grunted in sour loss. He eagerly snatched up the large pile of chips for himself with his broad arms, grinning from ear to ear like a fool. "To papa you come!" he let out a guffaw, while Bison hit the table with a clenched fist.
"Come and join us fellas, this could take a while," Dr. Robotnik chuckled, smoke billowing from his mouth courtesy of the cigar he had in his fingers.
Bowser laughed and headed straight to the large golden and red Victorian Camel Back sofa that obviously was designated exclusively for Bowser to sit on. He sat his large frame comfortably, with his arms spread all along the back of the sofa, and cockily signaled Sorceress to sit with him with his index claw. The blue skinned villainess giggled with a blush and eagerly floated towards him, siting closely next to him.
Ralph and Chocolette sat next to the sofa in the two remaining chairs.
"Mi casa es su casa, kids. Only my best and most trustworthy friends get to sit with me," Bowser laughed loudly with one of his paws resting on Sorceress's shoulders. "You two look thirsty. Let me order you some of my castle's special drinks!" he said and with a simple nod, he signaled a passing Fly Guy waiter to come closer and he immediately hurried towards him.
The blue masked minion bowed respectfully to him. "Please bring two Koopas Over the Cliff for my guests," the Koopa King ordered him. The Fly Guy glanced at Chocolette and Ralph and then looked back at his king, bowed affirmatively and flew away rapidly.
Not ten seconds after that, the same Fly Guy appeared with two tall neon green drinks; one of them was five times larger while the other glass was smaller and had a decorative purple umbrella in it.
The short Fly Guy handed the smaller drink to Chocolette and then, with a bit of a struggle, handed the bigger one to Ralph. He then bowed tiredly to them and turned around to face his king, with his forehead sweating profusely.
Bowser smiled thankfully at his minion. "That's all for now, go back to your chores fella!" he ordered with a wave of his claw. The servant bowed and disappeared again.
Bowser returned his attention to the pair in front of him, noticing their skeptical looks at their drinks. "That's a favorite local drink, kinda spicy and strong in flavor," he explained and waited with curious eyes for their first try.
Ralph smiled apprehensively and glanced down at Chocolette. Her piercing emerald eyes seemed to be inspecting the bubbly green liquid with intense caution. He knew this was going to be her first time trying alcohol and he couldn't wait to see what her reaction was going to be. Chuckling, he clinked his huge glass with hers and smirked knowingly at her. "Cheers, Sugar Queen," he said smugly.
She blinked with an innocent blush but quickly shifted her expression and mirrored his smug grin. "Cheers!" she said and to Ralph's growing amusement, she made the terrible mistake taking a deep swig of her drink.
After swallowing, her eyes grew wide as plates and the dark queen immediately coughed desperately, feeling her throat go raspy and feel like it was on fire. "Wonka almighty, what is this?! Poison?!" she shuddered as nauseous chills ran up from the pit of her stomach to the tips of her long hair.
Ralph, Sorceress and Bowser laughed loudly as the queen tried her best to regain her regal composure. "Take it easy, your highness," Sorceress softly comforted her with a worried frown. "This must be your first time trying alcohol, right? After all, you just got plugged in a few days ago." The blue elf villainess looked at Ralph and Bowser with a scolding frown.
They both flinched instinctively at her glare, and Ralph quickly hurried to brush Chocolette's bare back with a reassuring hand while she kept coughing; he blushed upon feeling the soft and silky skin of her back. "There, there, Chocolette. You'll get used to it, don't worry. We're bad-guys after all; we tolerate alcohol much better than other characters." He gave her a wary smile to help reassure her.
Chocolette cleared her throat and straightened herself, while secretly enjoying his touch on her bare skin. "I-I know! This is nothing I can't handle," she said proudly. She cautiously took a much shorter sip of her drink. She rejoiced upon finding the flavor of the beverage a little bit more likeable than her first try; she figured that the trick was taking short gulps instead of deep ones.
"See? It's not that bad after a few tries," Bowser smiled goofily at her, though Sorceress still had a scolding frown fixed on him.
Just then they all heard again the collective grunts of their friends and Zangief's victorious roaring laughter.
"How does he do it?!" M. Bison complained in defeat.
"Zangief's the winner of this round," Clyde chuckled.
"You're out of the next game, Russian!" Dr. Robotnik joked sourly.
Zangief gave a look of mock while he once again collected the large pot for himself. "Do not be such sore losers!" he retorted. "Zangief is simply better card player."
Satine supported his face over the palm of his right hand and waved in amusement. "Oh calm down dear fellows. I have a hunch that next game Zangief's luck will disappear. Bowser! Ralph! Care to join us now?" the tall red demon asked with a broad inviting smile.
Bowser's excited expression couldn't have been brighter. "I'm game!" he said, much to Sorceress' chagrin.
Ralph on the other hand, scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "I would love to guys, but contrary to most of you, I don't earn or have any money of my own to bet…" he said apologetically.
The wrecker slightly flinched as he felt Bowser's large talon on his shoulder. "Oh but you do have money of your own boy! Here" Bowser said with a wide smile and from his cape he produced a large heavy looking burlap sack and handed it to Ralph.
Ralph took the bag with one hand and looked at Bowser in confusion. "What's this, old man?" he asked.
"While you guys were occupied kicking some heroes' butts in Hero's Duty, some characters started to bet against you and well you know me, I'm very a competitive old fella," he said with a wink. "So of course, I went in and bet against the odds completely trusting in you guys. Heh! You should have seen everybody's faces when you two won. And on ten to one odds! I haven't earned this many golden coins since Mario and I got plugged in! This is yours and her majesty's cut."
Ralph's and Chocolette eyes went wide as they looked inside the large sack; the entire bag was filled with golden coins and the bag was just as large as one of Ralph's hands.
"Sweet Mother Hubbard! Are you serious?!" The wrecker shouted in disbelief. "There has to be like…hundreds…no, thousands of coins in here! I-I haven't had this much money ever! Heck! I've never even had money before!" he gaped nervously at the bag, looking at it as if it was some unworthy treasure.
Bowser half smiled tenderly at him. "Fifty thousand to be exact; half for you and half for her majesty. You earned it fair and square! Now, let's cut the babbling and start this game already!" he said, and the giant turtle dragon grabbed his large sofa and yanked it forward to the card table.
Ralph stood still, frozen for a few seconds, wondering what to do. Instinctively, he looked to Chocolette at his side, as if silently asking her what to do.
The queen held her beautiful eyes with his and then smiled with a mischievous grin. "Go get 'em, big guy"
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The buy into the game was a staggering one thousand gold coins, but Ralph, feeling like a newly rich man, just reached into the sack and pulled out the cash, laying the jangling pile onto the green topped table and exchanging it for stacks of multicolored clay chips, each one marked with Bowser's symbol. The game was Five Card Draw, the simplest variant of poker. Ralph had learned it from hanging around his fellow bad-guys after he became a regular at Bad Anon.
Ralph watched as the cards were dealt around the table, five cards face down to each player. When everyone had their cards in hand, the game began. Ralph peered down at his own hand: a Three of Hearts, a Ten of Diamonds, the Ace of Spades, and the Queens of Spades and Clubs. He smiled inwardly to himself, pleased with the hand he'd been dealt.
Zangief started by posting a blind of twenty. Then it went to Bison, who matched the wrestler's bid. Clyde and Robotnik followed suit and so did Bowser. When it came to Ralph, he considered upping the bid, but feared that doing so would frighten everyone else off. He moved his twenty into the center to join the others, opting to stay in the game.
Chocolette leaned on Ralph's shoulder, peering down at the cards and trying to figure the game out. "What's going on," she whispered into his ear.
"Watch and see Sugar Queen," he whispered back. "This may get interesting."
Now came the part of the game where players could discard cards they didn't want in exchange for new ones. Once again, the buck went around the table as the other villains traded their cards in and received new ones back. When it got to Ralph, he decided to ditch the Ten and the Three. What he got back gave him a slight pause. He took care to keep his cards close to his chest, so that not even Chocolette could see them.
The betting came again. Zangief wagered sixty, which Bison matched and Clyde raised by thirty. Robotnik matched Clyde's raise while Bowser added on another forty. When it got to Ralph, he decided to match Bowser's wager and not push the envelope.
Zangief looked around the table with a confident smirk and added an extra hundred to the wager. In quick succession, Bison, Clyde, Robotnik, and Bowser laid their cards face down, folding instead of playing any further with the Russian who seemed to have all the luck. All eyes settled on Ralph, expecting him to do the same.
"Friend Ralph, you are forgetting to fold, da?" the shirtless villain smiled around his cigar.
"Actually Zangief," Ralph said. "I was thinking of seeing your raise, and..." He had the pleasure of seeing Zangief's smile falter for a moment, "...raising you another three hundred."
He pushed the stacks of colorful chips into the center, a slight smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Bowser wearing a similar expression and Chocolette pressing her hands to her mouth, seeming afraid to make any noise whatsoever.
Zangief shook off his momentary stupor and chewed thoughtfully on his cigar, weighing his options. "Zangief will see the Wrecking Man's bet, and raise no further," he said, pushing his chips into the center. Since he had decided to not raise the bid any further, the betting was now over and it was time to lay their cards on the table.
The Russian street fighter went first, laying his cards face up to reveal three Kings, the Seven of Spades and the Two of Diamonds. He puffed on his cigar, silently daring Ralph to top his hand.
Ralph made a show of sighing, picking two card out of his hand and laying them down on the table to reveal the Aces of Spades and Hearts, then did the same thing to reveal the Queens of Clubs and Spades. "Friend Ralph, Zangief is sorry, but two pair wilts under three of kind."
"Who says I have two pair Zangief," Ralph answered back in a confident manner, and then laid his last card down, revealing the Queen of Hearts. Wreck-It Ralph had a full house.
It looked like the cigar was going to fall from Zangief's lips as the others at the table cheered and applauded Ralph's stunning victory. Ralph smiled confidently and pulled his winnings toward him with a big swoop of his arms. Beside him, Chocolette was doing everything in her power not to jump up and down like an excited schoolgirl.
Sorceress rolled her eyes with a bored expression as Bowser and the guys laughed loudly. She looked at Chocolette who snickered proudly at Ralph's victory, and with a foxy look, she floated over and grabbed the queen by her arm.
"C'mon Chocolette," Sorceress said, giving the Queen a conspiratorial wink. "Let's leave the boys to their game and go get a drink or two."
The Queen blinked confusedly at her. "Ahm…sure, why not?" she said, exchanging glances with Ralph, the wrecker oddly silent.
Sorceress smiled in a friendly manner and landed on her feet, while Chocolette stood up. "We'll be back soon, gentlemen." She said with a waving gesture and quickly started to drag Chocolette towards the bar.
Ralph stared at Chocolette's retreating figure as Sorceress gleefully pulled her towards the bar. A dreamy smile spread over his face as he watched the sway of her hips, finding himself wondering once again if she was doing it on purpose or if she just naturally walked that way.
"Ralph," he dimly heard Bowser say.
"Uh huh," Ralph said, still in his haze. Even as they made their way into the crowd, he kept her in his sights, marveling at the way her lustrous hair flowed behind her.
"Ralph..." came Bowser's voice again.
"Yeah, I bet she would look great in purple," Ralph replied.
The snap of a taloned finger right next to his ear brought Ralph back to reality. "What? Who the? I swear! Who'sawha?" He babbled incoherently. Looking around, he remembered where he was and turned around to see several sets of knowing grins aimed right at him. "Uhm... What?"
Zangief was the first to break the smirking silence. "Friend Ralph," he spoke in his trademark accent, a teasing tone lying beneath it. "Something about Czarina Chocolette has caught your attention, da?"
"I think he's taken a few too many bricks to the head," M. Bison said in a rare display of humor. "Maybe we should get a doctor's opinion. Doctor?" He turned to Dr. Robotnik with a smile.
The Sega villain gave a thoughtful puff of his cigar. "The patient seems to be suffering from some form of grandiose fantasy centered around the resident malevolent monarch of Sugar Rush. It is quite possible that further strain on his mind may result in any number of breakdowns."
"If I'm an expert on anything," Satine chimed in with a toothy grin, "it's what idle hands can do. And it doesn't take a genius to figure out just what Ralph's idle hands want to do."
Clyde just kept sipping his drink, preferring to let the others do the work. He knew it was all in good fun, but he preferred to keep his good natured reputation intact.
Ralph felt his ire trying to rise up, but he forced it back down. He'd been caught and he decided to man up and take it like a bad-guy should. "Yeah, yeah," he said, sitting down in his chair. "Laugh it up all ya like boys. Just remember whose arm she came in on." He grinned as he saw his counter tone their grins back a bit, a hint of envy glimmering in a few of their eyes.
Bowser laughed at the exchange, giving Ralph a good natured slap on the arm. "That's the spirit my boy," he roared through a few fiery chuckles. "Ahh, young love..."
That startled Ralph a bit, wiping away the confident persona he had just brought out. "Love? C'mon Bowser. Don't ya think it's a little early to call it love? I mean, sure we seem to get along pretty well, but what could she see in a guy like me?"
Bowser gave him what could've passed for a fatherly grin as he picked up his cards. "You underestimate yourself Ralph. And don't act like you don't notice the way she looks at you." That drew a few more chuckles from around the table.
Ralph refused to let the blush to his cheeks, opting to pretend like he didn't know. "N-No, I don't," he stuttered back.
"Come now Comrade Ralph," interrupted Zangief. "What problem is there? You are strong man, she is fierce woman. Sound like match made in paradise to Zangief." The wrestler punctuated his statement by reaching into the bowl of pretzels and cramming a handful into his mouth.
"C'mon guys, you can't be serious."
"They are Ralph," came Clyde's soft-spoken voice. "I've been in this arcade for a long time now. What I saw in Chocolette's eyes goes far beyond any kind of infatuation. In fact, it's the same thing I can see in your eyes right now."
Ralph took an interest in one of the walls, refusing to make any eye contact. "I don't know what you guys are talking about. She's a queen and I'm a working class Joe. That couldn't work, could it?"
"So what," Bison said rather bluntly, breathing smoke out in plumes through his teeth. "When it comes to this kinda stuff Ralph, it doesn't matter if you're top of the heap or bottom of the pile. Love, unlike certain people in this arcade, doesn't make those kind of distinctions."
Ralph sat there, staring at the table in deep thought. Was it possible? Could it be? A scaly hand laid gently on his arm brought him back to reality as Bowser smiled warmly at him. "Give the Queen and yourself some credit Ralph. Like Clyde, I've been in this arcade for over three decades now. I've lived to see many things, not the least of which was a bad-guy being hailed as a hero. I don't think a queen loving a working man is so far-fetched. After all, I know of two princesses who love a pair of plumbing trained brothers. Nobody ever seems to question that."
A spark of hope was kindled in Wreck-It Ralph's heart from the encouragement he was getting from his friends. As bad-guys, they had all learned not to expect much, but that didn't stop them from dreaming and hoping. So neither would he. "Thanks guys," he said with an appreciative smile. "I needed that. So..." His confidence returned and a smirk crossed his features. "...did we come here to play cards or gossip like the Princess Council? I don't know about you boys, but I didn't plan on wearing a dress tonight."
Laughter greeted his joke, accompanied by a new hand of cards and chips being pushed forward. Ralph relaxed as he felt completely at home amongst his fellow villains. But in the back of his mind, he briefly wondered what his Sugar Queen was up to with the devious Sorceress.
-0-0-0-
Away from the ears and eyes, Sorceress found two empty stools near the bar top. Letting go of Chocolette's arm, she signaled the queen to sit down with her and then waved to the ShyG uy bartender to come closer. Instantly recognizing Bowser's date, the short minion rushed to the two ladies.
"Hello dearie, could you please bring us some Fire-Flowertinis, please?" She winked at him and the Shy Guy bowed respectfully and immediately started working on their drinks. Chocolette watched in wonder as the short servant blended a FireFlower with some neon orange looking liquor, just to then pour the liquid into two tall martini glasses and finished them with a tiny cherry bomb on each one.
The Shy Guy pushed both drinks towards the ladies and Sorceress elegantly took both with a tender smile. "Thank you so much dear, that will be all for now" she winked regally. The bartender bowed happily and rushed out again to attend to other guests.
Sorceress switched her attention back to the Dark Queen, "Take it easy on this one, your highness. This is a Fire-Flowertini, another local alcohol drink." She handed one of the glasses to her with a giggle. "You'll find it quiet flavorful, cheers!" She clinked her glass with Chocolette's.
The dark queen timidly sniffed the drink and then gave it a quick sip. To her surprise, the drink was much sweeter and appealing than the Koopa Over the Cliff that Bowser had ordered for them before. "Oh wow you were right! I really like this one!" She smiled enthusiastically at her blue elf friend.
Sorceress sniggered, finding the slightly innocent expression of the Racer Queen amusing. "I had the hunch that someone like you, who comes from a candy themed game, would prefer a bittersweet drink", she explained and then went a bit wide eyed when Chocolette took a much bigger sip from her glass.
"Let's make a toast!" Sorceress suddenly said with a cheerier voice, startling Chocolette a bit.
"Uhm sure…" the dark racer said with uncertainty, raising a questioning brow.
They both raised their glasses in unison. "Let's see…what should we toast to? Uhm…" Sorceress pondered while mischievously tapping her chin.
Chocolette half smiled at her in amusement. "How about for being the hottest bad-girls at the party?" she grinned with confidently.
The blue elf villainess blushed and laughed maniacally. "That's a splendid suggestion! Alright, A toast for us, the most gorgeous evil ladies in this celebration," she cheered and just when Chocolette was about to clink her glass with hers, Sorceress smiled with a mischievous idea. "And for the lovely bad-boys in our lives." She quickly touched her glass with Chocolette's before the Dark Queen could stop her.
Chocolette blushed, taken aback. "Wha-what?" she stuttered, blinking in confusion and forgetting to drink completely.
After delicately drinking from her glass, Sorceress narrowed her eyes and smirked at her. "Seems that Ralph is having a good time with the guys. It's really rare to see him hang out with his pals from Bad Anon," she commented and Chocolette curiously glanced over her shoulder to catch a far way view of Ralph. He looked quite happy, laughing and joking with the rest of the guys.
Sorceress's smile grew wider upon noticing Chocolette's dreamy love struck smile. "You like him quite a lot, eh?" she boldly commented, making the Dark Queen spin around again to look at her with her green eyes as big as plates and her cheeks scandalously red.
"Wha-No! I-I mean…" the racer queen didn't know how to answer her as it was perhaps the first time that someone, besides her racers, had so daringly pointed out her obvious growing attraction for the famous wrecker.
Sorceress put down her martini glass and supported her chin on the back of her left hand, smiling knowingly. "No need to keep that act with me honey, I'm a bad-girl too after all," she explained with a dark playful smirk. From the looks of her red eyes, it was obvious to the queen that no excuse was going to convince her otherwise.
Chocolette looked away, frowning in embarrassment. "Am I that obvious?" she asked bitterly in defeat.
Sorceress let out an excited squeal and grabbed her hands while grinning from ear to ear. "Oh dear, that is so lovely! You don't need to act so prideful! I truly think the programmers made you for each other!" she almost yelled, earning the attention of some other characters that were close to them.
'Wow, she's much louder and cheery than what I expected,' the racer queen thought, while smiling warily at her new girl friend. "You-you think?"
"OF COURSE!" Sorceress yelled again. "Don't you feel it in your code?!" She then gasped in realization. "I bet it's only a matter of time before you two rapidly fall into the excited twister of LOVE." She added a cheesy special emphasis to the last word.
Chocolette wrinkled her nose in mockery and pushed Sorceress's hands back to her lap. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, pull the brakes there sweetheart, LOVE?! We're just casually flirting and…well I'm still not sure if he's into me." She confessed the last part with a frustrated sigh.
Sorceress laughed loudly in utter amusement, much to the queen's surprise. She wiped away a tear of laughter and looked at her with an eyebrow arched. "You're kidding right? Haven't you noticed the ogling looks he sometimes gives you?" she pressed while pushing Chocolette's glass towards the queen in an encouraging way.
Chocolette blushed and took a long quiet sip from her drink, clearly remembering Ralph's change in demeanor after their fall into the Cy-bug Queen's lair, his subsequent invitation to be his date to Bowser's rave and of course that sexy confident persona that he showed to her while she teasingly changed into her dress back at Black Cola Castle. "W-well, he's a bit more responsive now I guess…But still, I don't think he takes me seriously!" She barked angrily, taking the cherry bomb between her fingers and eating it in one annoyed bite.
Sorceress was about to say something when Chocolette suddenly smirked evilly at her with her emerald eyes wide open. She could almost see the engines revving in the Dark Queen's mind.
"Dear Sorceress," Chocolette began with a plotting glint in her eyes, "I bet you know your way around Bowser's castle pretty well, am I right?" she asked with a playful snicker.
Sorceress half smiled with narrowed eyes and took a sip of her martini. "That I do, your highness," she answered with a defiant smirk of her own.
"And I would also bet, from the looks of how the bartender so eagerly abandoned his other costumers to attend you, that you my dear also have a say in the matters of this castle," she continued, mimicking her gesture and drinking with her.
Sorceress smiled, her red lips still pressed against her martini, and discreetly leaned over to Chocolette. "What is her highness plotting?" she whispered in delight.
Chocolette grinned sinisterly at her. "Wanna help me with a little number, my friend?"
-0-0-0-
Skrillex was not pleased. Not pleased at all. Then again, it took a very special kind of person to enjoy being tied up and gagged inside their own sound booth, and he was not one of those people.
He had just put on the classic hit Thriller, which all of the zombies in the house were now dancing to perfectly, when some psychotic looking weirdo jumped him from behind. The next thing he knew, the little top hat wearing freak had tied him up, gagged him, and to add insult to injury, he was now touching and messing with HIS equipment. He struggled against the licorice bindings, but they were a lot stronger than they looked.
The goggled shrimp seemed to take notice of his endeavors and leaned in close to whisper something, his breath smelling like Pixy Stick dust. "Terribly sorry about this chap, but I 'ave me orders from the Queen. Fret not squire, 'm only uploadin' two songs."
The dj tried to scowl around his gag, but it was of no use. He finally just huffed and sat still, figuring that if it was only two songs, then it wasn't much of a hassle. 'Still,' he thought, 'they could've just asked me.'
-0-0-0-
That this is thriller!
Thriller night!
'Cause I can thrill you more
Than any ghost would ever dare try
(Thriller...)
(Thriller night!)
So let me hold you tight
And share a
killer, diller, chiller
Thriller here tonight!
Every undead character in the game was currently on the dance floor, flawlessly replicating the dance moves from the famous music video. They didn't know how they knew the moves and none of them really cared because they were having just too much fun. Moreover, all of the other guests were impressed by their moves, cheering them on.
At the poker table, Ralph and the boys were laughing at some obscene joke that Zangief had made. Satine was just about to launch into one of his favorite dirty limericks when the lights shut off and the music cut out. For a moment, the gathered villains uttered a murmur of discontent and confusion at the sudden darkness while the zombies uttered a collective groan at having their fun interrupted, but no one resorted to panic. A light at the center of the room flicked on, revealing the blue-skinned Sorceress standing atop the platform of Bowser's throne, smiling like the cat that ate the canary. "Ladies and Gentlemen, Villains and Villainesses, Emperors and Pawns," she announced to everyone present. "In honor of the courage and determination shown by our guests of honor, one of our honorees has prepared a special act for all of us, and especially for her partner in crime..."
Ralph was thankful for the darkness, because he could feel his cheeks begin to redden. 'What is she up to? Oh sweet Kojima, please let it be something simple, please let it be something simple...'
Sorceress took her smile up another notch as her eyes scanned around the darkness, as though she could see Ralph's mounting embarrassment, but she pressed forward. "Without further ado, please welcome the Bittersweet Sovereign of Sugar Rush, Dark Queen Chocolette Von Schweetz!" With that, Sorceress vanished in a puff of blue smoke and the light cut out, leaving the room in total darkness.
Ralph silently prayed that whatever Chocolette had planned would be something that he'd be able to live down. A red spotlight shone through the darkness, illuminating Chocolette lying across Bowser's throne. Despite from her positioning, her face looked calm and relaxed, almost as though she were bored.
Over in the sound booth, Franknerd licked his lips as he made the final adjustments to the sound system as the special track that the Queen had requested was finished uploading. 'Here goes nothin',' he thought, adjusting his goggles and pressing the PLAY button.
The music that began playing over the castle's loudspeakers sounded like a synthesized version of a harpsichord, playing quickly and precisely. But just as quickly as it started it finished, but not a split second later, Chocolette's melodic voice soared throughout the throne room, filling it from the checkerboard floors to the high vaulted ceiling.
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oooh-oh-oooh -oh-oh! Caught in a Bad Romance!
Following the first lyric, what sounded like two or three additional voices sang in harmony with Chocolette's.
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oooh-oh-oooh -oh-oh! Caught in a Bad Romace!
Ralph had never heard this song before, but hearing the Queen sing it was proving extremely entrancing, though the throne room was still pitch black.
Rah, rah, ah, ah, ah,
Roma, Roma, Ma,
Gaga, Ooh La La
Want Your Bad Romance
The lights blared on to reveal Chocolette on the platform of Bowser's throne, a microphone in hand while Razz and the Twizzler Twins were backing her up behind her.
Rah, rah, ah, ah, ah
Roma, Roma, Ma
Gaga, Ooh La La
Want your Bad Romance!
A barrage of synthesized music began playing in concert with the ladies, heavy on the bass but not altogether unappealing. Ralph even found himself tapping his booted foot in time with the rhythm.
Chocolette turned and strutted the length of the platform, swaying her hips teasingly to the cheers of the crowd, but her eyes were locked squarely on Ralph through the darkness as the lights around her flashed in mutliple colors
I want your ugly
I want your disease
I want your everything as long as it's free
I want your love
Love, love, love, I want your love.
She spun on her heel and strutted back the way she came, running a delicately manicured hand down the length of her dress as she sang the next verse.
I want your drama, the touch of your hand,
I want your leather studded kiss in the sand
I want your love
She whirled around to look at a very flustered yet very entranced Ralph again.
Love, Love, Love, I want your Love.
(Love, Love, Love, I want your love), echoed her three back-up singers.
The lights dimmed so that only a singly blue spotlight shone on Chocolette as she slowly stepped forward to the edge of the stage, her emerald eyes locked with Ralph's, never wavering, never blinking.
You know that I want you
And you know that I need you
I want it bad, your Bad Romance
The lights exploded in a shower of color, nearly blinding Ralph and the rest of the audience as Chocolette spun around on one foot, with one arm raised in the air.
I want your love and I want your revenge
You and me could write a Bad Romance
I want your love and all your lover's revenge
You and me could write a Bad Romance
She spun around and began walking towards Razz and the twins, only to spin around again and strut towards the edge of the stage.
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oooh-oh-oooh -oh-oh! Caught in a Bad Romance!
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oooh-oh-oooh -oh-oh! Caught in a Bad Romance!
The Queen of Sugar Rush began jerking and twisting her body in fluid moves as she sang the next part, adding to their discordant yet lyrical sound.
Rah, Rah, ah, ah, ah
Roma, roma, ma
Gaga, Ooh La La
Want your Bad Romance
Chocolette took a step forward, seeming as though she was going to step right off the platform and fall right into the crowd. Ralph was ready to spring forward, but faltered when she didn't fall forward. For a moment, it looked like she was hovering over the crowd, but as Ralph peered through the darkness, he noticed hands beneath the Queen's feet. And those hands were attached to the multi-tattooed arms of Rocko "El Habanero" Gobstopper. Ralph almost laughed at the oddity of the scene as Chocolette kept singing.
I want your horror, I want your design
She turned to look over her shoulder and locked her vibrant emerald eyes with Ralph's in a lustful gaze.
'Cause you're a criminal as long as you're mine
I want your love
Love, love, love, I want your love.
Having waded through the crowds through sheer brute force, Rocko reached the nearest bar and set the Queen down on its glowing neon surface. Chocolette resumed her shameless strut, walking across the bar top to the entranced gaze of villains and minions alike. She stepped in front of another spotlight that from Ralph's position darkened her into a buxom silhouette.
I want your psycho, your vertigo schtick
Want you in my rear window, baby, you're sick
I want your love
Love, love, love, I want your love
(Love, love, love I want your love), echoed Razz and the Twins once more.
Ralph wasn't sure, but he saw something moving through the upper darkness. As it got closer, he could make out the blaring green afro of Patcher "Warhead" Roger, who was swinging down on what looked like a rope made of red licorice. And his trajectory was dead on target with Chocolette. Once again, Ralph felt the urge to call out in warning, but he stopped himself when he saw Chocolette raise her hand up and nearly let his jaw drop as Warhead clasped onto it and pulled her up into his swing.
At the height of the rope's arc, he released her and Chocolette went sailing through the air, turning and swirling like some form of aerial ballerina. It all seemed to go in slow motion as Chocolette kept singing.
You know that I want you
And you know that I need you
'Cause I'm a free glitch baby!
I want it bad, your Bad Romance
Chocolette landed on the stage in a low crouch, her flight through the air not even appearing to have affected her as she brought her gaze up once more and singing once more as a shower of multi-colored sparks burst forth from every corner of the platform.
I want your love and I want your revenge
You and me could write a Bad Romance
I want your love and all your lover's revenge
You and me could write a Bad Romance
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oooh-oh-oooh -oh-oh! Caught in a Bad Romance!
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oooh-oh-oooh -oh-oh! Caught in a Bad Romance!
She began walking forward again, her steps in time with the rhythm of the pulsing beat, each step bringing her closer to the edge of the stage once more and the roar of the crowd.
Walk, walk, fashion, baby
Work it, move that glitch, crazy
Walk, Walk, fashion, baby
Work it, move that glitch, crazy
She sang as he moved up and down the platform, swinging around and slinking past her singers.
Walk, walk, fashion, baby
Work it, move that glitch, crazy
Walk, walk, fashion, baby
Work it, I'm a free glitch, baby
She spun around and raised her arm, pointing through the flashing lights and darkness right at Ralph, who stood rooted to the spot in awe of what he was seeing and hearing.
I want your love, and I want your revenge
I want your love, I don't wanna be friends
J'veux ton amour et je veux ta revanche
J'veux ton amour I don't wanna be friends
Her eyes were burning with the conviction and passion with which she was singing, her eyes boring straight into Ralph's being.
No, I don't wanna be friends
(Oh, caught in a bad romance), sang Razz and the twins once more in haunting harmony.
I don't wanna be friends, Chocolette sang, putting every ounce of passion she had into the song.
Want your Bad Romance
(Oh, caught in a Bad Romance)
Want your Bad Romance!
She belted out once more, throwing her head back in wild abandon.
The lights and music cut out again, sending ripples of confusion through the crowd. Ralph himself was confused as to what had happened when he heard it. A much softer series of beats than before, but they we're steadily growing in intensity.
There ain't no reason you and me should be alone tonight
Tonight yeah baby tonight yeah baby
I got a reason that you should take me home tonight.
Chocolette's melodic voice seemed to be coming from everywhere and nowhere. Ralph could see that everyone was looking around in just as much confusion as he was when the beam of a spotlight illuminated one of the upper ledges of the throne room. There was Chocolette, walking with one foot crossing in front of the other, prowling like a cat on the hunt. But her eyes were still focused right on Ralph, making sure he saw her every move
I need a man who thinks it's right when it's all wrong
Tonight yeah baby tonight yeah baby
Right on the limb is where we know we both belong tonight
She reached one of the Koopa-esque gargoyles and wrapped her hands around it, swinging around it on the very edge of the ledge. With a little bit of leverage, she flipped over the top and landed atop the statue's head, lying low in a crouch, appearing a dragoness.
It's hard to feel the rush
To push the dangerous
I'm gonna run right to, to the edge with you
Where we can both fall far in love
Chocolette leaned forward and fell over the front, drawing gasps from the crowd and Ralph especially, fearing what might come. But Chocolette simply smiled and glitched away in a puff of smoke, only to reappear on the edge of the stage, much to the relief of all the spectators.
I'm on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment of truth
Out on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment with you
I'm on the edge, the edge, the edge
The edge, the edge, the edge
I'm on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment with you
I'm on the edge with you
She disappeared again and reappeared atop the bar once more, holding a shot glass in hand which she quickly threw back. Ralph was impressed that she didn't flinch as she started walking across the bar top in that sexy strut she pulled off so well.
Another shot before we kiss the other side
Tonight yeah baby tonight yeah baby
I'm on the edge of something final we call life tonight, alright, alright
She disappeared in a puff of smoke again to reappear on the platform again as a wall of flames erupted around her. Ralph wondered how she pulled that trick off, but he noticed Warhead sneaking off the stage with a gas can in hand. Ralph let a small chuckle escape as Chocolette resumed.
Put on your shades cause I'll be dancin' in the flames
Tonight yeah baby tonight yeah baby
It isn't hell if everybody knows my name tonight
Alright, alright
She writhed about, dancing as though she were made of the flames themselves. Everything about her dance was sensuous, beautiful, and just downright sexy. 'And she's doing this all for me,' Ralph thought.
It's hard to feel the rush
To push the dangerous
I'm gonna run right to, to the edge with you
Where we can both fall far in love
One of the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling suddenly lit up like a Christmas tree, twirling around slowly, with Chocolette centered inside it, her legs dangling precariously over the sides.
I'm on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment of truth
Out on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment with you
I'm on the edge, the edge, the edge
The edge, the edge, the edge
I'm on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment with you
I'm on the edge with you
The lights turned blue and illuminated Rocko standing atop the stage with Razz and the twins sitting around him, looking out toward the audience. He was playing a saxaphone and playing it well. Ralph was impressed that the Sour racers had such talent in areas other than racing. But then again, that was hardly surprising when Chocolette herself was so full of surprises.
The spotlight's beam rose towards a spot above Ralph. Once more, Chocolette was dancing on top of the ledge, directly above Ralph.
I'm on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment of truth
Out on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment with you
I'm on the edge, the edge, the edge
The edge, the edge, the edge
I'm on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment with you
I'm on the edge with you!
The music cut out once more and Chocolette dropped from the ledge and plummeted straight down towards Ralph. Ralph was momentarily stunned, but his instincts quickly took over and he stuck his massive arms out. The next thing he knew, Chocolette landed in his arms, looking up at him with a smile. Her hair was wild and her eyes were alight. Ralph was overcome with the sudden desire to lean in and kiss her passionately, but the sudden eruption of applause broke him away from that thought as the house went wild.
The two looked around, watching the entirety of the throne room applauding the performance. Up on the throne platform, all six Sour Racers stood and bowed, thanking the audience for their cheers. Chocolette just kept blushing and buried her face into Ralph's jacket. Ralph simple held her and rubbed her back, extremely pleased that he had asked her out tonight and flattered beyond belief at what she had dedicated to him.
Chocolette leaned up and whispered huskily into his ear. "Find us a nice quiet corner Ralphie, and please get me a drink."
Ralph smiled, doing as his queen asked and walking away from the poker table without so much as a word. Bowser smiled as he watched them walk away, happy to see them growing closer together. He felt Sorceress slide up alongside him and he drew her close with a claw around her petite waist.
"Did you have something to do with this, my dear," he asked, knowing full well that she did.
Sorceress giggled mischievously. "I only played a small part, oh great Koopa King. The whole idea was Chocolette's."
Bowser chuckled lowly and gave the magical elf a kiss atop her dark blue hair. "Well done my sweet. I think we've given the two of them all the help they need."
-0-0-0-
It took a bit of time, but Ralph finally located a spot where he and Chocolette could be alone, seating her on a stool as he made to sit on a nearby ottoman. He was locked in an internal struggle with himself to not allow himself to show her just how much he appreciated her spectacle, but Chocolette saved him the trouble by reminding him that she needed a drink.
Ralph gave a slight huff, but he smiled and gave the queen a wink. "As my queen commands," he said with a half bow and made his way over to the nearest bar.
Chocolette sighed dreamily as she saw Ralph eagerly walk away to retrieve their drinks from the bar. She was so lost in her little bubble of excitement and yearning that she didn't notice a tall figure suddenly overshadowing her small form.
"That was an impressive performance, if I may say so," she heard a deep masculine voice speak from behind her.
Chocolette turned around to face the man, raising both eyebrows in surprise. He was a tall muscular man with dark greenish skin and a short red beard. His red hair was curled and combed regally in some sort of intricate golden head piece with a ruby in the center of his forehead. He was clad in a dark brown and black Arabic-styled tunic, also sporting golden jewelry and a black cape with strange red symbols on his shoulders. He smirked darkly at her with his yellow eyes shining with danger, and something in Chocolette's program was telling her that this character was powerful and very dangerous.
She turned on her stool and offered him a polite bow. "Uhm Thank you, I'm flattered sir...?" she inquired.
"Ganondorf...Lord Ganondorf, at your service my lady," he said sinisterly as he held her hand in his own.
-0-0-0-
Thriller is © of the late great Michael Jackson
Bad Romance and Edge of Gloryare © of Lady Gaga
Reviews are welcome and make your writer and co-writer very happy!